One of the engines won't start

[zonzik]

Hi! I have 1996 Sea-Doo Speedster. It has two engines. Today I took it on the lake. It was running fine as usual for about 30 min. Then the right engine just died. I tried to start it again and it did but died again after 15 seconds. And never started again. It spins but won't start. I tried few times to start it and start spinning 5-6 times and stops. 5-6 times and stops. Any idea what might be wrong?

 

[zonzik]

Today I checked the compression on the both engines. It's 150/150 and 155/155. Switched the spark plugs-nothing. There is no spark on the starboard one. The port is just fine-starts right up.

 

[zonzik]

I left it at the local marina. Today they called me that it's probably the stator assy(generating coil) on the starboard eng. I guess that the summer is over for me...

 

[LTD.330]

Good luck hope your fix is easy.

I have a new to me 95 Speedster and had the same thing happened to me on Friday. Started both engines on shore prior to heading over to the ramp and everything was good. Put the boat in the water and the Starboard engine won't start. Further diagnosing shows that there is no spark on the Starboard engine. Please let me know what you find out with your boat.

The troubleshooting section in the manual lists "Defective MPEM" or "Faulty Magneto System" for a crank but no spark problem Does anyone know of tests I can perform to verify these individual systems are working or not?

If anybody else has any ideas or suggestions, please let us know.

 

[zonzik]

Hi! I posted reply yesterday but it disappeared... Ok, yes, it's the Magneto Flywheel Assembly. The stator goes bad. A new one retails between $300 and $550. I found used for $85 with the shipping. Check eBay for Seadoo Stator. My engine is 717 so any stator from 717, 720 and few others should fit. Even from a jetski. Mine will arrive wednesday and will post a reply.

 

[LTD.330]

Glad to hear you have your problem figured out. How did you determine it was the Stator and not the MPEM?

Looking through the manual, it looks like the Stator will be a real pain to replace. Probably have to remove the motor from the boat to get at it. :willy_nilly:

Does anybody have any good tips or tricks on replacing a Stator on a 587?

 

[zonzik]

The mechanic did. He hooked up my engine to a jetski (same motor) stator that was in the shop and it gave a spark. And yes, it's a real pain to replace it. He said he can probably replace it without taking the engine off but can't do the timing like that. So probably will have to take it off the boat.

 

[LTD.330]

If you don't mind, can you ballpark what your mechanic will charge you to fix the stator?

I'm headed back to the lake this weekend and will check the electrical resistance between each phase of the stator. Not sure what range of values I should be seeing, but will be looking for variances between the phases.

 

[zonzik]

No problem! As soon as I find out.. The resistance should be between 4 and 7.something I think. He checked it in the manual but I can ask him tomorrow when I bring him the stator.

 

[Gamerse]

It's 7 ohms, no plus or minus. That is for the stator though, (yellow wires) not the magneto. If you have 717 engines, and you should, it has a magneto for ignition, that should measure 40-76 ohms on the black to black/red wires.

Unfortunately, the magneto assembly on pre 787 engines are behind the flywheel. (787s also use a magnetic pickup style ignition on a modern style stator) The 717 requires removal of the flywheel, which requires a special tool to pull the flywheel. You do NOT have to pull the engine to re-time it. It is a procedure in the FSM, if your mechanic does not have one, find another mechanic, if you like him, download it and give it to him.

:cheers:
Ernest.

 

[Gamerse]

Glad to hear you have your problem figured out. How did you determine it was the Stator and not the MPEM?

Looking through the manual, it looks like the Stator will be a real pain to replace. Probably have to remove the motor from the boat to get at it. :willy_nilly:

Does anybody have any good tips or tricks on replacing a Stator on a 587?

P.M. sent

:cheers:
Ernest

 

[LTD.330]

Ernest, thanks for the resistance specs. My 95 Speedster has the 587 engines and according to the manual the stator is located behind the flywheel. I should be able to disconnect the stator wires from the MPEM to measure the resistance. I'll report back what I find.

Thanks for your help!

 

[zonzik]

Thanks for the info! Where I can find the Full Service Manual?

 

[Gamerse]

Thanks for the info! Where I can find the Full Service Manual?

p.m. sent
:cheers:
Ernest

 

[zonzik]

Already gave the manual to the mechanic. It's still in the shop. Too bad cause just got new wakeboard and GoPro Camera...:stupid:

 

[LTD.330]

Well, I unloaded all of the crap out of the back hatch and removed the storage tray and was eyeballing what I would need to remove the stator wiring harness when I had the idea of trying the starter again. My boat started. I can't explain it.

Both myself and my son did not see any spark last week. We put a spark plug wire on a spark plug and grounded it on the bare metal of the block and hit the starter button. The engine cranked and no spark, not even a weak spark. This weekend the boat started right up.

Now I'm really confused and not at all comfortable with the engine reliability.

Has anybody else heard of a similar problem?

 

[zonzik]

I'm not very good with the engines and not sure if it's possible for a bad stator to work from time to time, but as far as I know it charges the battery so you should be able to check if it does on a running motor. Because my batteries went bad just before the stator to stop working completely. Hope to get some proffessional advice here.:banghead:

 

[Gamerse]

You guys have magneto ignitions. They are independent of any battery power, because they generate their own, separate from the stator coils. If you disconnected the Mpem from the wire that goes to the coil, and jumper the starter relay, the engine should run blindly untill you ground the ignition coil wire. Which is how the Mpem controls it by the way.

No spark one week, then it is back the next, the only hope you have is thinking about what conditions have changed since then.

You can also pull the front engine cover, and blow behind the flywheel with an air compressor. That may knock out some debris or rust. There is a theory that every time the starter engages, it leaves bit of itself behind in the front cover area. Over time this can build up into chips or metal dust. Magnets love metal chips and powder. Anyway, wear a mask, and cover the rest of the boat in something you can ruin. Lots of dust...

Don't get discouraged, the answer is always simpler than the question you are asking.

:cheers:
Ernest

 

[LTD.330]

Thanks for the encouragement, intermittent problems drive me nuts. Only thing I did with the boat between no-spark and starting it was that I pulled the boat out of the water and put in the storage barn for the week. Then I pulled it out of the barn and towed it to a different area in the marina so that I could work on it with daylight shining into the engine compartment. Total distance from the ramp to the barn to the workspace is less than a half mile with tow speed not exceeding 15 MPH.

One data point I left out in my story was the weekend prior to the engine not starting I had a dead battery and put a charger on it. Not sure if the battery was dead because the bilge pump killed it with the 6.5 inches of rain we had (is the pump even automatic). Anyway, after charging the battery, both engines started and ran normally.

 

[Seadoobuddy]

Well, it looks like the problem solved. Dead Battery.....
Maybe the SeaDoo gods are watching for you.

 

[LTD.330]

To be clear, the battery was dead, then recharged, and the boat was operating normally the week before I experienced the no spark problem.

 

[zonzik]

$375 Labor + $85 Stator and I'm back on the water:willy_nilly: Hope that LTD.330 will get his problem solved. BTW have you checked all the cables and wires?